My Favorite Frosting for Sugar Cookies
on Jun 01, 2019, Updated Jun 28, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
My Favorite Frosting for Sugar Cookies is buttery, creamy, and fluffy to top your favorite cookies or any other dessert that calls for simple icing.
You couldn’t ask for a simpler icing, both in its ingredients and preparation, and it is oh-so delicious. I’ve kept things pretty basic here — all you need is butter, heavy cream, vanilla, and powdered sugar. For how easy it is, the flavor is surprisingly rich and luxurious. I mean, it doesn’t get much better than a fluffy frosting that’s equally buttery and creamy, with just a touch of vanilla notes. I salivate just thinking about it!
Sugar cookies are a favorite around our home because of the many ways to make them personalized between all the shapes and decorating options… And because they taste so good! So, of course, I had to come up with what I believe is the best frosting for these favorite cookies of ours, and I think I just may have done it.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Kid-Friendly: I’m pretty sure every kid loves decorating sugar cookies and this recipe is simple enough that they can help make the frosting, too.
- Easy to Make: You can whip up the frosting quickly and get right to the fun part: decorating.
- Homemade Goodness: Sure, you can buy a can off the grocery store shelf but homemade frosting is so much tastier. The simple prep and ingredients of this recipe make choosing homemade a no-brainer.
Ingredients
- Butter
- Heavy Cream
- Vanilla Extract
- Powdered Sugar
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities
Popular Substitutions and Variations
- You can substitute different extracts for the vanilla. For example, if your cookie recipe has almond extract in it, use a few drops of almond extract in your icing. Just keep in mind that extracts vary in strength so taste as you go.
How to Make My Favorite Frosting for Sugar Cookies
Step #1. Add the butter and cream to your stand mixer’s bowl. Beat with the whisk attachment at medium speed until combined, then turn speed to high and mix til light and fluffy.
Step #2. Turn off the mixer and add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix it in slowly until combined then turn the speed up and whip again. It should be a good spreading consistency. If it is too thick, add a bit more cream. If it is too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.
Recipe FAQs
This frosting will last up to 5 days covered in the fridge. Just bring it to room temperature before using because it’ll be hard as a rock right out of the fridge.
Decorated sugar cookies should last for 4 to 5 days in an airtight container.
You sure can! Place the cookies in layers separated by parchment or wax paper in an airtight container. You might risk slightly squishing them, so don’t stack them too high, and leave plenty of space to securely close the lid on the container.
The cookies (or cake, or other dessert) should be totally cool before icing them. If they’re hot or even slightly warm, you’ll risk the frosting melting off the cookies. I like to give them a solid 45 minutes to an hour-plus before icing. They’ll also cool quicker if you place them on a cooling rack!
Expert Tips
- This one’s a great contender to customize with food coloring. I like to make a batch of it, section it out into small bowls, and dye each bowl a different color so the kids and I can create artistic cookies with ease! It’s also a great consistency to be able to add it to a piping bag for more intricate designs.
- If you’re applying sprinkles or other decorative items, like candy, add them to the cookies immediately after icing. If you wait too long, the icing dries a bit and gets somewhat of a crust, so things won’t stick as well.
- If you want to layer colors of frosting, especially when using a piping bag, let the first color sit for a bit so that it “crusts” (dries out a bit) so that they won’t blend into each other.
- Gel food coloring is a great option because it won’t change your icing’s consistency like liquid food coloring can.
My Favorite Frosting for Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 3-4 tablespoons heavy cream, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2.5-3 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Add the butter and cream to the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix on medium speed with the whisk attachment, until the butter and cream combine.
- Increase the speed to high and mix for 3 to5 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy, stopping to scrape down the sides a time or two.
- Add the vanilla and 2.5 cups of the powdered sugar. Mix on low until combined, and then increase speed to medium and whip for 1 to 2 minutes.
- The consistency of the icing is important if you are going to ice sugar cookies with it. It should be a soft-medium consistency and firm, but soft enough to spread with a butter knife.
- If the icing is too thick, mix in a little cream. If it needs to be a little thicker, add a 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and whip to combine until it’s sturdy enough.
- Use icing to frost around 2 dozen medium sugar cookies. It also pipes well, if you’d like to put it in piping bags with tips.
Notes
- This is a great recipe to add food coloring to if you’d like to decorate seasonal sugar cookies. I’ll often make a batch, divide it into smaller bowls, and dye each bowl colors.
- You are going to add sprinkles to the cookies, do so just after spreading the frosting. They’ll stick better that way. If you wait until the frosting has time to set, it forms a bit of a crust, so sprinkles won’t stick as well.
- If you are layering colors of frosting, like when using a piping bag, let the first color dry (or crust) before applying the second color so they don’t bleed.
- Consistency is super important when frosting cookies. You might need to thin it with a little more cream or thicken it with a little more powdered sugar.
